TopNews

Intermodal

The amount of for-hire freight moved across multiple transportation modes increased 1% in December from the month before, marking the third consecutive monthly gain, according to the Transportation Department.

Intermodal freight volumes returned to growth in the fourth quarter of 2016, posting a 1% year-over-year increase that tempered volume declines earlier the year, according to the Intermodal Association of North America.

While a measure of total U.S. freight shipments in October broke a string of being in negative territory for 20 months, November fell back while separate reports for the month show an improvement in intermodal rates for the second consecutive month while truckload linehaul rates turned lower.

Changes on the way for trucking could be as sweeping as the deregulation of the early 1980s or the invention of the Interstate Highway System, according to analysts with FTR at the company's transportation conference.

Import cargo volume at the nation’s major retail container ports should be at near-peak levels this month even as retailers work to cope with the Hanjin Shipping bankruptcy, according to the monthly Global Port Tracker report released Friday.

Truckload linehaul rates fell again in July from the same time a year ago, marking the fifth straight month of year-over-year declines, according to latest readings from the Cass Truckload Linehaul Index.

Overall intermodal traffic recorded its first volume decline in the second quarter of the year following 25 consecutive quarters of growth, according to a new report from the Intermodal Association of North America.

After many delays, the larger locks of the Panama Canal opened this weekend, allowing larger ships carrying intermodal shipping containers coming from Asia to access East Coast and Southeast ports. While there has been much speculation that this could shift cargo traffic away from the busy West Coast ports, how exactly things will play out is yet to be seen.

Separate gauges of truckload line haul rates and intermodal rates both fell in May, according to newly released figures, following a Monday report showing freight levels are well below those of the last several years.

The amount of North America freight shipments and freight spending remain below levels from a year ago despite monthly gains, according to the latest Cass Freight Index report, and there is a concern conditions could get worse.